We received a wonderful donation from the amazing ladies who organize and run the LutheRun 4 Derek last night. Pictured here are Bethany Baumgartner (and her daughter), Jenna Govier, and then Brandee, Peyton and Lucas. Thank you so much to this group of ladies for running this event. All proceeds go directly into our Memorial Fund which fund local projects and Derek’s Annual Scholarships.
Our family was out together in Gays Mills, WI for the annual apple festival. We have a special connection to the area and especially Starry Ridge Orchard which was owned in the past by my husband’s grandfather. Walking the rows and picking apples from trees he planted and tended is a wonderful tradition for us as a family. We make gifts for our extended family who live all over the country from the apples and share the family connection to such a beautiful part of the world. When my husband went to pay for our apples(two bushels) he was told that one bushel had already been paid for. A family had paid for five bushels, and he gave us the card about Derek and paying the kindness forward. We were very moved by this and look forward to paying the kindness forward ourselves.
Michelle Martin
We had a really cool act done for us tonight! Dr. Rain from Fennimore Dental made a house call to pull out Lucas’s final baby tooth…that’s been loose for months & mom was just about to schedule an appointment anyway!!! Dr. Rain stopped over at our house, pulled it out, then said it was an act of kindness for Derek!! So honored to know this man, and for his kindness not just tonight, but always!
To show his appreciation for our donation to the Stars and Stripes Honor Flight, as an Act of Kindness, Jonathan Lucory, the Milwaukee Brewers catcher, invited Dennis and our family to be his guests at the September 19th Milwaukee Brewers game. Pictured is Dennis wearing Jonathan’s gear. Thanks Jonathan! It was a wonderful day!
Today after school with my 4 year old we went to Skin’s hot dogs in Greenville, SC. There were 3 Deputy Sheriff’s eating during their lunch break . Aiden wanted to say hi to them but he is shy, so when we walked by them to go bathroom, he smiled at them and as they waved. When we returned to our table to eat, he said he wanted to buy them a hot dog. So lunch was on Aiden today as he purchased hot dogs for 3 Greenville County Sheriff’s Deputies . Our waitress waited for us to leave to tell them and we left a few “Doit4Derek” cards explaining the random act of kindness. Our Police forces have been under a lot of tension with the recent events. I hope my 4 year old relieved that tension for a least a little while.
We were chosen by a stranger to honor Derek’s memory this evening at dinner. May his memory love on forever. Looking forward to paying it forward. #chipotlecoonrapids #inmemoryofderek
Dave Arthur
Pat Burja Frankenfield
On our way to Niagara Falls and stopped in Elkhart, IN at a travel stop for some horrible fast food and gas. A gentleman asked for some money for gas and he asked the right guy. Gave him some money for gas and a little extra for down the road. It was nice to be approached and asked for help. A lot of the Acts we do are for the unsuspecting and not all are for those truly in need. Was nice to help someone and I hope God blesses him in his travels and gets to his final destination safely.
Steve Lendosky
This week the Bekkum Memorial Library of Westby WI was the recipient of several beautiful oak picture book bins in our children’s area. One of these bins was an Act of Kindness in honor of Derek, and we are very honored. Derek’s book bin reads. “Pay Kindness Forward–Donated in Memory of Derek Lendosky.” These book bins will be used by several generations(at least!) of youth in the Westby area, encouraging them in a love of books and literacy. Thank you so very much, from an entire community: it will certainly be paid forward!
| My daughter, Olivia, and I were having a “girls breakfast” this morning at Vicki’s Cozy Cafe in Muscoda WI. She’s been having a hard time accepting the newest addition to our family, her baby brother, Gabriel, so I thought it would be nice for just the two of us to have a nice morning together to show her she is still special to me. So we got ready together, me in a sundress i have only worn once and her with her amazing fashion sense decorated her headband with a bunch of butterfly clips! When the waitress handed me the card and said a man had paid for our breakfast I didn’t quite understand what was going on. When I read the card I wanted to cry. What an incredible thing to do to honor such a remarkable little boy! This act of kindness made our morning together that much more special. Praying for your family and friends, we will definitely keep this act of kindness moving for Derek!!
Meagan Neprud |